Bittersweet
by xoxobecca619
Summary: Bittersweet ending for Jon/Daenerys. From Daenerys POV.
1. Chapter 1

The North had become a dreary place for Queen Daenerys Targaryen. Snow, ice, and demons were all that flashed through her mind as she rode with her Dothraki guard through the villages close to Winterfell. Sansa Stark, Queen in the North, had invited Daenerys to attend a feast held in the honor of her first born, a True Stark. A baby boy with raven hair and brown eyes. Sansa had taken on the position of Queen in the North after the War of the Dawn, as Arya had decided to go back to Storm's end with Gendry and Bran going beyond the wall with Meera Reed. Daenerys hadn't even dared to think of the other Stark, well Targaryen(but he would always say "I'm not a Targaryen"), after he had disappeared from her life and her heart three years ago.

As Daenerys rode through the village, she was reminded of all the things she had wanted to forget. After a sword of fire was plunged through the Night King's heart and Drogon and Rhaegal had fallen from the sky, she wanted to be nowhere near this dreary land again, but Sansa Stark had always been a formidable ally in the siege on King's Landing after the defeat of the dead. Daenerys had watched the life be choked out of Cersei Lannister by her own brother, Jamie Lannister, after he decided to ride north when Cersei refused to send Lannister troops to help defeat the dead. It seemed Jamie Lannister, who was at one time her worst enemy, had become one of her most formidable allies. It also didn't help that him and her other closest ally, Sansa, were married after the War of the Dawn, truly uniting all kingdoms. All houses sworn fealty to House Targaryen after the war. The Seven Kingdoms were once again a peaceful place, yet Daenerys felt no peace.

She had everything she ever dreamed of. Daenerys was the Queen of the Seven Kingdoms after all, the most powerful woman in the world. The Seven Kingdoms have never seen the kind of peace and prosperity that Daenerys had brought when she rode Drogon over the burnt down ashes of the Red Keep and brought with her a new hope. Daenerys had King's Landing rebuilt and more majestic than ever, and a new castle was born with a new throne. Done were the centuries of ruthless and dreadful Iron throne, a new throne made of shining Dragonglass had taken its place. Flea Bottom has become a hub for world trade and travel, as Daenerys saw fit to clean up the city and give pride back to her people. Daenerys was proud of what she had and all she accomplished, but she never was truly happy.

Daenerys was snapped out of her thoughts when they reached the gates of Winterfell, looking more green than she had ever seen it since Spring had arrived. Sansa and Jamie were there to greet her, as well as Arya and Gendry. He was nowhere to been seen. She didn't dare hope he would be there, after all it had been three years. Sansa guided Daenerys through the long winding halls of the castle, which seemed to shine with new light. Gone were the dreary black decorations, now filled with vibrant grey, red , and gold decorations resembling the merging off House Stark and House Lannister.

"Tyrion would have loved to be here." She thought mindlessly making her way through the castle. She always left Tyrion in charge whenever she needed to travel out of King's Landing. Tyrion was happy his former wife and brother found love after all that had happened to them. He always seemed to remind her that it was also time to move on with her life.

Daenerys couldn't help but be plunged back into memories again, as she hadn't been to Winterfell in years.

 _Heatful arguments in the Great Hall. Informal council meetings in the dining area. The chill of the winter air that never seemed to go away no matter how high the fire. Hours long discussions with Bran in the Godswood. Sparring lessons with Arya in the courtyard. Tyrion drinking himself in oblivion. Tormund and the Wildings eating their body weight In meat. Ser Davos telling stories of Shireen Baratheon to anyone that would hear. Lyanna Mormont laughing during a conversation with Ser Jorah. Drinking wine and talking with Sansa until morning light. Drogon and Rhaegal flying over Winterfell's walls. White Direwolf steps coming into her room quietly in the night. The fire framing his face when he learned he lost more of his men. Screaming matches of what to do when the Dead reach Winterfell. The feeling in the pit of her stomach at the thought of ever losing him. The fire in his gaze when they had stopped arguing from exhaustion. The desire looming in her when he touched her cheek. The world melting away when he finally kissed her after all those months ago, on the ship sailing from Dragonstone, which he never wanted to talk about. The soft gasp that came from him when she touched his scars, and kissed her way down his body not missing one. The way his hand entwined with hers when they finally came together again. The way he whispered "Dany" when they had reached their peak. The way he held her the entire night and kept her warm from the northern chill. The way he looked at her when they woke in the morning, and realized this was their last day on earth._

Bittersweet memories.

"Daenerys?", Sansa asked.

Daenerys was once again lost in thought for the second time that day.

"I apologize, Lady Sansa, I got lost in thought." Sansa gave her an empathetic look, as she knew what was running through Dany's mind as they had passed by his old room.

They had reached the Queen's chambers when Sansa finally said what she had wanted to say Dany since she arrived. Sansa said it every time she saw her friend.

"He will come back."

Daenerys entered the room.

"Thank you for your kindness, Sansa. I am quite tired from the journey. I'd like to rest now."

Sansa gave her an understanding nod and ordered all remaining guards out of the room.

Daenerys looked out of the large window in her room, and Winterfell had never looked so green. She wondered where he was after all these years, if he ever returned to Winterfell. She made sure his siblings never spoke of his whereabouts to her. She didn't want to know, and she was sure he didn't want her to know either.

He never wanted to wear the crown. She knew that from the beginning. He wasn't meant to be a King. He only accepted the role to help protect his people. She always admired him for that, as she was the same way. She wondered if he had traveled to Essos, as they would always talk about doing if they survived the long night. She wondered if he had a woman to warm his bed at night, as she had taken no other man after him. She wondered if he ever thought of her, as she always thought of him.

" _I'm not a Targaryen", he said._

 _The war for the dead had been over for a week now. King's landing lie in ash, but Winterfell still stood tall. Daenerys had been named Queen of the Seven Kingdoms that day, and held the coronation in the Great Hall of Winterfell, as King's Landing was burnt to the ground. Cersei Lannister had kept her promise to burn down all she had tried to build. She had at least kept one promise before her death._

 _Bran Stark had returned to Winterfell the same day as the coronation. He had some starling news._

 _He stared awestruck and dumbfounded at Bran when he showed him the vision in the Weirwood._

 _He didn't say a word to her when he reentered Winterfell that night. Daenerys knew that he would never accept his true lineage. He always was a Stark, even if he never had the name. She never thought that this revelation would spell doom for him._

 _He never gave her a reason when he left in the middle of the night. She had been fast asleep in her chambers when she heard footsteps come in the door._

" _I love you." It was she could say to him. She was a queen. A Queen didn't need to beg for a man to stay._

" _I love you too." It was all he said to her that night and kissed her on the forehead and left._

She never thought he would come back to her. He was too stubborn for that. She could blame Lyanna Stark's blood for that she supposed. Daenerys would never love another like she loved him.

A knock on the door.

Missandei entered the room with another.

"Mother, what time is the feast?", a small voice crossed the room.

"In an hour, Rhayella. Go with Missandei and get ready. I want you to look your best."

She gave her daughter a kiss on the forehead and sent her on her way.

 _It was a month after he had left when she realized that life had sprouted in her womb. She had nearly fainted when the maester at the Keep told her she was with child. Hadn't she been cursed when the witch had taken her sun and stars from her? She didn't know if she wanted to cry of joy or sadness. All she knew is that no one would ever know it was his. Sansa and Tyrion the only ones who ever truly found out. They had kept their relationship a secret during the war. She touched her growing stomach, and cried._

As Rhayella exited the chamber, she thought of a black-haired man bouncing a baby girl with blonde hair and grey eyes on his knees. She thought of a house with a red door with a lemon tree growing outside the window.

She signed and turned back to the window, overlooking the spring that had just arrived.

If you think this story has a happy ending, you'd be wrong.


	2. Chapter 2

The white direwolf with the red eyes ran freely through the forests near Winterfell. Spring had just arrived, and the wolf loved the feeling of green grass beneath his feet. The snow wasn't completely melted off the ground yet, giving the ground a slosh from the melting snow. The direwolf would return to Winterfell once every couple of weeks. The guards would greet him with strange looks wondering where the direwolf had been, more than likely away from his owner. Sansa would always greet the direwolf with warm hands, and the newborn babe would stare at him with wonder.

Sansa would always ask, "Where is your owner?" Ghost would look at Sansa with sad eyes.

Today was different than the other days when Ghost returned to Winterfell. The castle was filled with lords and ladies from all over Westeros. The banners of House Stark and House Lannister splayed all over the walls. Queens guards roamed the training grounds, children ran around the castle laughing, and Arya Stark was there. Arya had spotted the direwolf and greeted him with a big smile.

"It's been so long." Arya spoke with an excitement in her voice only reserved for him. Arya hugged him tightly.

Arya was the only one who knew who was behind Ghost's eyes. Jon had been warging into him since he left three years ago. Arya being as keen as she is noticed right away when the direwolf returned to Winterfell a month after Jon left. Arya had followed the direwolf out of Winterfell when he left for the first time after appearing and found Jon. Jon was staying in a small house in a village just outside of Winterfell. _A house with a door painted red._ He had made Arya swear not to tell anyone, especially Dany, where he had gone. Arya had kept that promise for three years.

 _Bran had returned to Winterfell the day of Daenerys official coronation. No one expecting him to join in the festivities as he had been beyond the wall for a week making sure all the walkers were dead._

 _Dany looked beautiful in the house colors of black and red as she entered the Great Hall of Winterfell. The hall was filled with Lords and nobles from the North. Varys, Missandei, Greyworm, Sansa, Arya, and Jaime Lannister were all seated at the Queens table when Dany came down the hall. Jon could only stare at her in wonder, how did he get so lucky? A bastard from Winterfell went from Night's Watch recruit, to Lord Commander, to the King in the North, and now he was lover to the most beautiful and powerful woman in the world._

 _Tyrion Lannister held the commencement for the coronation. "Long may she reign!" The Lords of the North said in unison as Daenerys Targaryen was crowned. Dany was not just loved by the North, but by the whole world. She had brought fire and blood and destroyed all that was bad in the world. Jon didn't know when it had happened, but Dany's flame had engulfed his heart. He loved her more than he ever thought he could love anyone._

 _As the feast for the coronation raged on, Jon sat next to his Queen. He watched as the hall was filled with excitement and a hope that seemed long dead for centuries. Dany squeezed his hand under the table and grabbed his attention._

" _I love you." She whispered so only he could hear it. Her faced beamed with a glow he had only seen on her since the Great War had ended. He squeezed her hand back and smiled. They didn't need to say the words of their love most of the time, their eyes spoke all the words they needed to say._

 _Bran has been sitting in his wheelchair near the back of the hall with a blank stare on his face. He called himself the "Three-Eyed Raven" now. Whatever in the Seven Hells that was. Jon got up from the table after Dany began to talking to Lord Glover and Lord Manderly. He walked over to Bran to ask him about the threat being completely expunged from over the wall. Bran just stared at him._

" _Come with me to the weirwood, Jon. I have something to show you." Bran said in a monotone voice._

 _Jon never being one to deny his beloved brother followed him to the weirwood with the face._

" _I have wanted to show you this since you returned, but the risks were too great at the time." Bran told Jon. Jon knew Bran could see all things. He told him of how he saw Jon at hardhome fighting the walkers, how he saw Jon holding Ygritte's lifeless body in the snow, and how he awoke when the red witch returned him from the dead._

 _Jon held his hand to the tree and was shown a vision._

 _Lyanna and Ned Stark in a tower. Lyanna bathed in blood giving birth to a baby boy with dark grey eyes. Ned holding the babe in his arms. "Promise me, Ned." A white-haired man and a raven-haired woman standing in a forest at a wedding. The white-haired man being killed by Robert Baratheon. The babe being brought to Winterfell under the hard gaze of Catelyn Stark._

 _Jon stared at Bran in shock and amazement. It can't be. Rhaegar and Lyanna's son, Jaeherys Targaryen. Daenery's nephew._

 _Bran stared at him with that blank stare and said nothing._

 _Jon didn't know what to feel rage, confusion, and hurt all stemmed in his mind after he stormed back through the gates towards the castle. Ned Stark had lied to him his entire life. His life had been a lie. Jon went through his entire life thinking he was the bastard of Ned and some tavern wench. Jon enduring Catelyn's hate, and being shunned from the Stark family. Jon wanted to punch the ever-living shit out of Ned Stark right now._

 _As Jon stormed through the castle, he ran straight into Dany._

" _Where have you gone, my love? The party is dull without you." She smiled at him that bright smile, and stroked his cheek._

 _He just looked at her with sad eyes. Daenerys was his blood. Blood of the dragon. She wasn't alone in the world anymore. He couldn't bring himself to look at her anymore. He just walked past her while she said his name._

 _He couldn't be with her. She deserved better than this. He didn't even know who he was anymore. He needed to get away. He needed to get away from this castle, from this family, and away from her._

 _He left Winterfell, and her because he loved her too much._

The direwolf roamed around the castle. The castle was in full swing as the feast for Sansa's son, Rickon, was just born a couple fortnights before. Everyone looked at the wolf in surprise as he padded through the hallways. _So, the former King in the North hadn't gone very far._ The wolf reached the top of the castle intending to look around Jon's old room. Jon had forgotten how good it felt to be in Winterfell.

A gasp from within side the room stopped the wolf in his tracks. He didn't expect to see her here, after all these years. He didn't think she'd ever return. _How stupid he was, Sansa was one of her closest allies and friends. Of course, she'd be here._

She was as beautiful as she has ever been with a flowing red dress and her hair in her signature braided style. She was sitting on the bed holding one of Jon's old furs and crying. He couldn't bear the sight.

"Ghost?", she said hoarsely after she lifted her head from the old furs.

Ghost just stood there staring at her with his red eyes. Jon was stuck in the wolf, and didn't know to run into her or out of the room. He still loved her as fiercely as he had the night he left. The sight of her sitting in his old room and crying was something he would never forgive himself for. He had done this to her. He thought by leaving she could move on with her life, not spend it with the empty shell of the man he had become.

It wasn't the relation that bothered him. He could have cared less for his father. He was no Targaryen. He was a Stark. Ned Stark was the only man he ever considered a father. It had been the fear of letting her down because he didn't know who he was anymore. She deserved to have a man who could raise her up, and love her like she deserved to be loved. He never doubted his love for her. It was the life he could never truly give her that made him leave. His claim was better to the throne than hers, Bran had told him. He didn't want the crown. He never had. A job that had been casted upon him.

Jon thought that by leaving her, she would be able to have the life she wanted. Throughout the years, he had figured she had moved on when he heard the rumors of an heir to the throne, Rhayella. No one in the kingdom knew who the father was as the queen never married. Jon had assumed she was barren when they were together. She had told him of the stories of her khal and baby Rhaego. They had only been together twice before the war for the dead, and she never would have kept this from him. He figured the father was some Lord who she needed to seduce to get something she wanted. Rumors were the queen had been fond of one of the younger Tyrell sons when she renovated King's Landing.

Dany slowly got up from the bed and moved towards the wolf. Her face was red and puffy as if she had been crying for a while. She smiled a tearful smile, and put out a hand to pet the wolf. Ghost welcomed her contact.

"I have missed you." She said sadly and hugged the giant wolf.

To feel the touch of her skin again set Jon's mind in flames. Why had he waited this long to see her?

Jon could feel Ghost's senses when Dany hugged him. The wolf always loved her, and even took up in sleeping besides her when she was in Winterfell.

Dany started crying into the wolf fur. "I have missed him, Ghost. My life has been incomplete ever since he left. I still don't understand why, and now I find myself crying like a lost little girl in his old room. If you see him, try and show him that I still love him, and I forgive him for everything. There is something he needs to know. Please help him come back to me."

 _It was late at night and the moon shone brightly into the castle. Jon paced back and forth in the King's chamber as he couldn't sleep. He needed to get away, but he couldn't do such things without getting the kingdom in order first. He had spoken to Sansa in private, and gave her the rights to take his place as ruler. He had no doubts the Lords would argue with her on this, but it had to be done. There is always a Stark in Winterfell._

 _He had been doing his best to avoid Dany for the past three days. He didn't know how to approach her. She was so happy. He didn't want to take that away from her. So, he had told Tyrion he would be going to the wall on Rhaegal to survey the land and see what was left off the wall and castle Black. He hadn't been seen by anyone, but Sansa when he returned. He had told her of what he saw in Weirwood, and Sansa told him he will always be her brother and always be a Stark._

" _She is worried for you, Jon. Don't deny her the right to know you are leaving. She loves you, and she will understand. Please come back soon. We need you. She needs you." Sansa squeezed hand and smiled at him sadly._

 _Jon made his way to the Queen's chambers. He didn't think his heart could beat any more quickly. He had faced the Night King and stabbed him in the heart, but this would be the hardest thing he ever had to do._

 _Ghost trotted in the room as he always did._

 _Jon entered the room to see her sleeping peacefully. Her silver hair cascading around her. She looked almost unreal._

 _Jon just sat by the bed and stared at her. He reached out and touched her cheek. What a coward he was doing this to the woman he loved. It's for the best. Leaving her would give her the life she deserved._

 _Dany stirred when Jon touched her cheek. Her eyes opened, and she blinked in the darkness._

 _She shot straight up when she saw him. Her hand coming to rest on his face._

" _My love, where have you been? I have been so worried for you. Tyrion told me you took Rhaegal to survey the wall. I would have gone with you, if you just had asked." She moved into to kiss him on the lips gently, and he kissed her back more passionately than he usually does._

 _She sensed something was wrong, and pulled back. She touched his cheek gently._

" _What concerns you? You have been acting strangely ever since you went to the Godswood with Bran on the day of my coronation. Did he show you something? Are there any more wights beyond the wall?"_

 _He just stared at her for a few moments, taking her in._

" _No, the wights are gone. Bran showed me something in the weirwood that concerned my mother."_

" _Your mother?" She asked. "Your father never spoke of her to you; did Bran show you her?"_

" _Yes." Is all he could say. He was looking at her so intensely, his reserve might break right here._

 _She looked on him with concern. "What did you see?"_

" _My mother, Lyanna Stark."_

" _Lyanna Stark, your aunt? I don't understand." She said confused._

" _Lyanna Stark is my mother. Ned Stark took me with him after he found she bled to death from the birth."_

 _He stared as the wheels started to turn in her head. Lyanna,Rhagaer. It all started to make sense._

 _She looked at him with amazement and held his face in her hands._

" _Blood of my blood". She cried._

 _He said rather sharply, "I'm not a Targaryen."_

 _She lowered her hands from his face, and looked at him like she could read his mind._

" _You don't want me anymore because were related?" She had hardened her eyes._

" _It's complicated. I came here to tell you I'm leaving for a while. I need to sort things out."_

 _The look in her eyes was the one he wasn't prepared for. She looked like she had been betrayed._

 _He grabbed her hands. "This doesn't change my love for you in anyway."_

 _She looked down at their hands, and tears started to flow._

 _The next statement surprised him._

" _Marry me." She said confidently. "Marry me, and I will legitimize you as a Stark. We can rule the kingdoms together, and no one will ever have to know. Don't let something so minimal get in the way of our happiness. I know who you are, and this changes nothing for me."_

" _You know I can't do that Dany. I don't want the crown. You have always known that. I gave Sansa my title here. I can't go King's Landing and pretend to be a king when I am not one."_

 _She looked at him with tears streaming down her eyes. "Isn't our love enough for you to marry me?"_

 _She pleaded with him. "I love you."_

 _Jon didn't know what to say. He was never a man of many words. He played his emotions through his eyes. Dany understood that he wasn't going to change his mind. It took every ounce of will in him to get up._

 _He looked at her tenderly as she started up at him wide-eyed._

" _I love you too." He leaned down and kissed her forehead._

 _He didn't look back when he exited her room. If he did, he would have never left._

Dany unlatched herself from the wolf and clasped the old furs around her.

She wiped the tears from her eyes and looked aimlessly around the room.

"Sometimes I think I can still feel him in here."

She rose to her feet and started to walk out the door. She looked back and waved her hand for the wolf to come with her. Ghost followed.

He followed her into the Great hall that was filled with loud music, the aroma of fine foods, and the sheen of summer wine.

Dany had joined the table with Sansa, Arya, Gendry, Brienne, Jaime, and baby Rickon.

Ghost sat down next to Dany.

"Your Grace, it is nice of you to join us. I know your travels must have been long." Sansa said cheerfully.

Sansa noticed the direwolf sitting next to Dany, but didn't say anything as she didn't want to bring up old wounds.

"Yes, the travel was long but spring has come and the weather is fair." Dany said absentmindedly.

No one seemed to notice the furs Dany was wearing, expect Arya.

Arya knew Jon was warged into the wolf and looked at him with sad eyes.

A shriek from the end of the hall came in and all the Lords stood in respect for the person entering the room.

"Her Grace, Princess of the Seven Kingdoms, third of her name, and heir to the throne, Rhayella Targaryen."

The little girl came running and everyone laughed at the sight of the happy girl.

As the girl got closer, he finally got a good look at the next queen of the Seven Kingdoms.

Silver blonde hair and grey eyes.

Jon had warged out of the direwolf as he saw her. He couldn't breathe.

The little girl Rhayella was his daughter.


End file.
